


Silent Nights

by nearingexistence



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Deaf Draco Malfoy, Draco gets a good ending if it's the last thing I do, Found Family, Gen, Good Draco Malfoy, My First Work in This Fandom, Neopronouns, Questioning Draco, Supportive Harry, Trans Draco Malfoy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-07
Updated: 2020-04-07
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:08:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,851
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23373664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nearingexistence/pseuds/nearingexistence
Summary: Coming to Hogwarts, Draco was only focused on school. Fulfilling family expectations was already somewhat difficult since Draco was born deaf, but when a merperson unexpectedly appears outside of the Slytherin common room, Draco's life gets turned upside down as questions arise about life, gender, and the wizarding society as a whole.
Comments: 5
Kudos: 77
Collections: HP TransFest 2020





	Silent Nights

**Author's Note:**

> Special shout out to @randoyoyo for reading through my writing and for putting up with me! You're the best!
> 
> This was created from prompt 130: A Slytherin student signs (perhaps they are Deaf or have a Deaf family member/friend) with (one of) the merfolk in the Slytherin common room. The merfolk have a completely different understanding/system of gender than wixen do. The Slytherin student learns something about themselves in the conversation or simply begins to question their own perception of the gender binary...
> 
> Thanks for the prompt!

Since this fic depicts sign language rather frequently, words signed in conversation will be in quotation marks (like regular speech) and italicised. Sentences with only one or two words italicised indicate an inflection on spoken words. Likewise, sentences with only one or two un-italicised words indicate an inflection on signed words. Sign language would normally follow a different set of grammar than English, but this was written with English grammar in mind for simplicity.

——

It was a few months into Draco Malfoy’s first year at Hogwarts. The Slytherin common room was quiet that night, but it was especially quiet for Draco, who was born without the ability to hear. A deaf person at Hogwarts was not unheard of, but they were so few and far between in the wizarding community that rarely would someone outside of a deaf person’s family know sign language. Because of the communication barrier, Draco found that making friends was rather tiring, and eventually stopped making an effort. 

Instead, he got into the habit of venting his frustrations into the air. At home, Draco’s room was large enough to allow him to pace and rant as he pleased. Hogwarts, however, was a different story. Their small, shared dorm rooms simply didn’t have enough square feet, making the common room his only option. Thankfully, the rest of Slytherin seemed to be in bed by one or two in the morning, so he had the room to himself.

That night, he wore a new path into the floor’s thick, green carpeting as he paced the room, signing as he walked. The late hour actually made his movements faster than the slow, methodical pace he normally took in conversation.

“ _ How could you get a B on your essay?”  _ he was saying. “ _ Merlin, I’m such an idiot, what will Mother and Father say? They’re going to be so disappointed. I cannot disappoint Mother and Father. Stop being so stupid, Draco, pull yourself together.” _

He paused in his pacing, shoving his fingers through his hair. He was very glad, once again, that the other Slytherins were asleep.

He pivoted to make another pass and caught movement in the corner of his eye in the direction of the huge windows that cut into the Great Lake. He turned toward the glass, fully expecting to see a school of fish or a plant drift by. Instead, outside the window, was a merperson. 

Now, Draco had read about merpeople before, and heard stories about the race from others, but never had he ever seen one in person. Their long green hair floated softly around them as their fins made slow movements, subtly correcting their loose stance in the water. Silhouetted by the moonlight, they looked almost otherworldly. And their large yellow eyes were staring directly at Draco.

Draco dropped his hands, mouth agape. The merperson followed the movement, an expression flashing across their face, before moving their arms in a concise manner. It took Draco a second to realize with a start that he was seeing sign language! Of course! Hadn’t he read that merpeople primarily converse through sign language due to the water’s reverberation? He blinked, realizing that he had been lost in thought and didn’t process what they had signed. The merperson sat stagnant for a moment, then repeated the signs.

“ _ I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.” _

“ _ No,” _ Draco hurriedly signed back. “ _ You didn’t do anything wrong. I’ve been more jumpy than usual lately, and it would seem that I haven’t been paying close attention to my surroundings. Perhaps it is due to the late hour.” _

The merperson drifted closer to the window, head now resting on their hand. “ _ Deep in thought? _ ”

Draco hesitated, then berated himself for the distrustful mindset. This wasn’t one of his father’s spies, this was just a normal merperson. He didn’t need to worry about them spilling his secrets. Probably. And, anyway, what secrets did he really have? He was only eleven, after all. “ _ Something like that _ ,” he eventually decided on. “ _ Do you do this often? Communicate with people through the window, I mean. How many magic folk have you talked to?”  _ He paused for a second, then flushed. “ _ Sorry, I’m very curious.” _

_ “Don’t worry about it,”  _ they replied with a smile _. “This is the first time. I hardly ever come this close to the school, so it’s rare that I come across any students.” _ They paused, their smile growing wider, revealing rows of pointed teeth. “ _ You’re actually the first one I’ve encountered who could communicate with me.” _

“ _ That makes sense,”  _ Draco replied, his lips drawing upward in kind. “ _ Learning sign language isn’t really a common thing in my community. People only really use it if they’re deaf or know someone who is.” _

The merperson nodded. “ _ It is unfortunate. We are unable to speak verbally outside of the water without harming the hearing of creatures akin to yourself, and while in the water our words become jumbled. Hence our frequent use of sign language.” _

Draco nodded.

The merperson seemed almost pleased. They drifted closer to the window. “ _ Are you deaf?”  _ they asked.

“ _ Yes,” _ Draco answered. “ _ I was born deaf.” _

_ “That must be challenging in a world full of people who can hear and talk.” _

Draco nodded. _ “My father made sure that all of the professors were aware of my disability, so they either sign to me, in addition to speaking to the remainder of the class, or they speak in my direction so I can read their lips. Father also got me a translator, but I try to avoid communicating, except where absolutely necessary to avoid the awkwardness of having to translate back and forth. Not many people bothered to learn to sign, so it’s not difficult to just...ignore them. _ ” He paused, thinking, then shook his head and fixed the merperson with a polite smile. “ _ But enough about me. I’m Draco, by the way, _ ” he signed, spelling the letters of his name for them. “ _ What’s your name?” _

They spelled it out for him: U-S-E-V-I-O-U-S. Usevious. 

Draco nodded.  _ “Nice to meet you, Usevious.”  _

“ _ It is nice to meet you as well, Draco.” _

Draco paused, eyebrows drawn together. He realized a while ago that he couldn’t really discern the gender of the merperson. Was it rude to ask? Well, his father had always told him to be upfront with questions so you aren’t confused in the future, so it wouldn’t hurt to come out and ask, right? 

“ _ What gender are you?” _

Usevious signed, “ _ I’m not any gender. I don’t have one.” _

“ _ Don’t…”  _ Draco faltered. “ _ Don’t have one? What do you mean?” _

They smiled patiently. “ _ Exactly what I said. I don’t have a gender.” _

“ _ That’s an option?”  _ Draco asked, eyebrows raised and eyes wide. After a moment he rubbed his eyes, then responded, “ _ Of course it’s an option, you just said you didn’t have one.” _

_ “It’s alright,”  _ Usevious replied. “ _ I understand that humans are much more strict about the idea of gender, but they truly did not inform you about different gender identities?” _

Draco shook his head, now standing closer to the window. “ _ This is probably the first time I’ve ever really given gender a thought. I was always told it was something you were born with based on your body parts.” _

Now Usevious’s expression mirrored Draco’s from moments before as their eyes widened with surprise. “ _ That is...shocking, to say the least. We learn about different gender identities as early as we can comprehend them. We’ve always been taught to experiment with labels until we find something that fits how we feel. You…”  _ their face dropped _. “You’re saying humans don’t promote that freedom of expression at  _ all?”

“ _ I guess we don’t,” _ Draco shrugged.

“ _ I’m sorry. _ ”

“ _ It's not really a problem. I guess humans just do things differently.” _

Usevious looked like they wanted to argue, but dropped it. “ _ So, Draco, why were you pacing earlier?” _

“ _ It’s how I clear my head. I don’t really have anyone to talk to, so I just...talk to myself.”  _ He shrugged again, like it didn’t matter, but this sort of honesty was new to him. He was afraid of being berated for his method of coping, especially by the one person he found himself connecting to. He had to fight to maintain eye contact while he waited for a response.

“ _ That makes sense, though it must get tiring after a while.”  _ Usevious replied after a moment. “ _ If you want, you can always talk to me.” _

Draco released a breath he didn’t know he was holding and, for the first time in a long time, gave a genuine smile. “ _ Yes, I suppose I can _ .”

——-

And so Draco kept slipping down to the common room at night to clear his head. Now, though, instead of pacing with his thoughts, he sat and talked to Usevious. Soon enough, he found himself coming nearly every night and staying for hours. It was...oddly refreshing to spend time with someone who could actually communicate with him without the conversation feeling like a burden. Draco found himself missing the long talks over the summer break, a deep yearning in his chest that didn’t fade. Was this what it was like to care about someone who cared back?

Was this what it was like to have a friend?

The beginning of school couldn’t come fast enough. After what seemed like a year in itself, September came around and it was time for students to return to Hogwarts. Draco spent the train ride and the welcome back feast almost abuzz with anticipatory energy. He would get to see Usevious that night! That was more exciting than any sweet potato casserole or triple Mac and cheese. 

Finally, festivities drew to a close and students retired to their dormitories. Draco waited until he thought everyone would be sleeping, then crept out of bed and down the stairs to the common room. He held his breath, but thankfully the common room was devoid of any other Slytherins, leaving Draco able to communicate freely (not that there were many people who knew enough sign language to understand him in the first place, but better safe than sorry). 

He pulled out his wand as he got to the window. He and Usevious had come up with a signal so the merperson would know when Draco was back from break. Draco held the want out to the window and thought,  _ lumos _ . When the tip of his wand sprung into light, he made several figure 8s with it. He halted his movement when he saw a figure approaching the glass. Usevious! He motioned with his wand and thought  _ nox  _ so the light would extinguish, then put his wand away as he waved hello. He couldn’t help but grin.

“ _ Draco! Hello! How was your break?” _

“ _ My parents were the same as usual: overly involved. They’ve been a bit on edge recently because of Harry Potter.” _

_ “Oh?”  _ Usevious signed. _ “What happened with Harry Potter?” _

_ “He said one of our teachers last year was possessed by the Dark Lord.” _

A look of horror crossed Usevious’s face. _ “He’s back?” _

_ “Apparently, _ ” Draco answered, grimacing. “ _ I wouldn’t believe it if my parents didn’t react so strongly. My father was out of the house most of the time, meeting with old friends.”  _ He paused. “ _ Old death eater friends.” _

“ _ I’m sorry, Draco.” _

_ “It’s okay. I’ll...deal with it.” _

Usevious quirked their lip. _ “Maybe you should become a merperson and live down here with us. To avoid all of the drama.” _

The offer caught Draco off guard, making him laugh. “ _ Maybe I should _ .”

“ _ That was interesting by the way.” _

“ _ What?” _

They nodded at Draco’s wand. “ _ Your spellcasting. You didn’t have to say the words.” _

“ _ Oh! Yes, I’ve learned how to cast spells by just thinking the incantation rather than having to say it. In the past, other deaf kids at Hogwarts have had to do the same, or learn how to say it verbally. Verbally is  _ far _ riskier to attempt, since the magic may go haywire if you don’t say the word exactly right.” _

_ “Oh! I would have thought mental casting would be more difficult, most people, hearing or not, have a hard time learning that, right?” _

_ “Yes, that’s true. I was lucky to be born with a strong magical core, it makes mental spellcasting easier to accomplish.” _

_ “Oh okay. Does your interpreter help with your schoolwork much?” _

Draco rubbed his neck. “ _ She did, last year, but I had father dismiss her over the summer.” _

“ _ Why?” _

_ “It was...embarrassing to constantly have someone follow me around, come to all of my classes, the Great Hall, the library. I still felt like I was at home, being watched every second of my life. I need some freedom. Some autonomy.” _

_ “That makes sense,”  _ Usevious signed _. “I didn’t realize your parents were so strict.” _

Draco shrugged. “ _ I’ve gotten better at lip reading, so it’ll be fine.” _

_ “Yes. I’m sure it will.” _

——

A few months later, Draco was sitting cross-legged on the floor of the Slytherin common room, facing the window where Usevious was lounging on a rock at the bottom of the lake. They had been discussing the latest developments of petrifications and speculating about where the chamber of secrets might be, but the conversation dropped off after a while. Without the pull of communication, Draco slipped into his thoughts, where a certain topic had been stationed for a while. It was hard to keep from making a weird face, nerves were getting the better of him. He couldn’t help but chew on his lip as he was thinking.

Usevious waved to get his attention. “ _ Hey _ ,” they signed with a laugh. “ _ What’s on your mind? You’ve been staring into space for a while now.” _

Draco took a moment before answering, “ _ How do you know what gender you are? Or if you even have a gender?” _

They looked contemplative. “ _ I’ve heard it described as a sort of pull,”  _ they explained _. “A pull toward something internal. I guess it was a  _ lack _ of pull that led me to realize I didn’t have a gender when I started thinking about it during my self-definition period. That’s when merpeople figure out who they are and define it for the rest of the city,”  _ they added upon anticipating Draco’s confusion about merfolk ways.

Draco longed for that freedom, especially now that he wasn’t quite sure where he fell on the gender spectrum—if anywhere.

“ _ So” _ , Usevious began. “ _ You’re questioning your gender now _ ?”

“ _ I guess I am.” _

“ _ That’s exciting,” _ they signed enthusiastically.

“ _ I guess _ ,” Draco replied, much less enthusiastically. Nothing about this realization process has been exciting. If anything, he’s become much more prone to anxiety about gender questioning than excitement. “ _ How do I know if I’m actually trans though?” _

“ _ Okay, let’s get to the bottom of this whole gender thing. You were assigned a gender at birth, right? What does that feel like?” _

Draco frowned, leaning into his hand. “ _ That’s the problem. I’m not sure it feels like anything? I’m not sure of anything anymore.” _

“ _ Surely gender has some sort of...meaning? A reason behind people identifying themselves with it. What does being a boy mean?” _

“ _ Being a boy means...being strong _ .”

Usevious craned their neck in a way that seemed inquisitive. “ _ Are you strong _ ?  _ Do you fit this category of ‘boy’?” _

Draco raised his hand to reply in the affirmative, then paused, his hand falling slightly in the air. Last year he would have said yes without question. Yes, of  _ course, _ he was strong. He was a Malfoy. He had to be strong. But…sitting here tonight, he wasn’t quite so sure how strong he actually was.

“ _ I don’t know _ ,” he finally answered. “ _ I need to be, but I don’t know if I am _ .”

“ _ You need to be yourself, not what others think you are.” _

He snorted. “ _ Living as someone else is the story of my life.” _

Usevious gave him an ambiguous look, something akin to sadness. “ _ I’m sorry to hear that. _ ”

“ _ It’s just...Mother and Father expect me to be their perfect son, someone they can show off to their...well they don’t have friends, so maybe allies? I don’t know. But I’m already letting them down because I can’t hear, so everything else I do, everything else I  _ am  _ has to be perfect.” _

“ _ That sounds stressful _ .”

Draco made a dismissive gesture, shifting his posture into more of a slouch. “ _ I’m used to it. _ ”

Usevious grimaced. “ _ I know.” _

They sat for a moment, the silence almost rippling between them.

“ _ What if…”  _ Draco faltered a bit. “ _ What if I’m trans?” _

“ _ Then you’re trans. And I’ll help you figure it out.”  _ Usevious smiled and pushed their hand against the window. 

Draco mirrored the action, matching the hands through the glass, a relieved grin on his face. Thank Merlin he had a friend like Usevious.

———-

Third year arrived faster than Draco was expecting, especially considering all of the events surrounding Harry Potter, the Chamber of Secrets, and a freaking  _ Basilisk _ . The first night after the students returned, Draco crept downstairs and signaled to Usevious. They came almost immediately, and the two began to talk about their summer and the new school year.

“ _ Father was furious that I didn’t tell him about the petrifications. He threatened to transfer me to Beaubaxtons because of it.” _

_ “Why didn’t you tell him? Surely you knew he was going to be upset.” _

_ He would have taken me away from you _ , Draco wanted to say. “ _ He always does this. Overreacts. He’s always told me to contact him if something doesn’t go my way and he’ll ‘make it right’, but that’s exactly what I’m afraid of. He destroys people that stand in his way. I…”  _ Draco paused. This was something that Draco had never spoken about before _. “I don’t want to have that destruction associated with me. More than it already is.” _

“ _ Is there anywhere you can go to get out of the house during breaks? Maybe a friend’s house?” _

_ Draco shrugged. “Not really.” _

“ _ Nowhere?” _

_ “I don’t really have friends at Hogwarts. Sure, some people talk to me, but if they don’t know sign language, am I just supposed to write down all of my responses? Although some people are kind of fun to mess with. I can sign “good morning how are you” and they think I’m insulting them,”  _ Draco said with a laugh _.  _ Hold on, come to think of it, Potter seemed to know at least a bit of the language, given that he’s gone out of his way to reply in earnest to something Draco has said. Maybe Granger taught him? Draco paused, staring off for a moment as that thought absorbed, before refocusing.

“ _ Well, maybe this year there won’t be a school-wide catastrophe so you can have some free time to make friends.” _

Usevious grinned. It was moments like these that made Draco remember just how inhuman Usevious was. Draco had almost forgotten how many teeth they had and how pointed they were. 

Draco snorted. “ _ Right. I’ll  _ definitely _ be using my free time making friends rather than studying or catching up on my sleep.” _

———

Well, Usevious was right, Draco  _ did _ have a lot of free time to play with, it just wasn't exactly used productively. Instead, this seemed like the perfect time for Draco’s mind to constantly produce a barrage of questions about gender. In class? Showering? Eating? The location and context didn’t seem to matter, Draco seemed to always circle back to the questions. Eventually, Draco found that it was even difficult to focus on conversations with Usevious. 

So one night, during a break in the conversation, Draco burst out and signed, “ _ Idon’tthinkI’maboy!” _

Usevious quirked their head to the side with a concerned look. “ _ Draco, your hands were shaking and you signed too quickly, can you try again a bit slower?” _

Draco took a deep breath. “ _ I don’t think I’m a boy, can you help me figure out what’s going on?” _

“ _ Oh! Yes, of course I can. You don’t need to be afraid to ask me for help, especially about gender stuff.” _

The tightness in Draco’s chest loosened a bit as they signed that. Of course Draco knew it was okay to talk to them about this type of thing, it was this unexplained anxiety that blocked the clear path to Usevious.

“ _ So are you a girl? Do you have a gender? Or are you unsure?” _

_ “I don’t know. Sometimes I feel like I have a clear picture of a gender in my head. And then the next day I have no idea. What’s going on? Why is this something I’m aware of all of the sudden?” _

_ “Sometimes when we learn a new concept, it resonates with us and stays on our minds for a while. It seems like the idea of being trans has resonated with you.” _

That would make sense, ever since they started talking about gender last year, Draco found that small things like the gender separated dorm rooms and gendered words were...grating and difficult to be reminded of.

Draco swallowed. “ _ I’m not sure what I am, I just know I’m not a boy _ .”

_ “And that’s perfectly okay. Self-discovery is not something that happens in a day. You can take as long as you need to figure yourself out, if you even choose to pursue that road at all. I know several merfolk who don’t know their gender and don’t want to, or who just consider themselves queer and leave it at that. There’s no incorrect way to be trans.” _

Draco’s eyebrows furrowed. _ “I don’t even know what pronouns I want, am I even allowed to call myself trans? I’m not as trans as you, as your friends.” _

Usevious shook their head. “ _ I don’t think you understand. You don’t need to have certainty about what labels you want or what pronouns you use in order to be trans. I chose to use gender neutral pronouns because that’s what feels best to me, and that happens to correlate to my lack of gender. But it’s perfectly okay to use whatever pronouns feel right, even if they aren’t traditionally in line with what’s expected from your identity.”  _

_ “So I could use h-e and h-i-m pronouns even if I realized I was a girl?” _

_ “Yep.” _

_ “And it’s okay to consider myself trans even though I don’t know what labels I want to use?” _

_ “Perfectly okay. Do you feel a bit better now?” _

Draco considered the question, taking a mental stock. “ _ I think so. I’m not used to being so unsure of myself. My parents have always told me exactly who I am and where I belong. It’s strange to realize that something I’ve heard my entire life is incorrect.” _

“ _ Parents try their best, but sometimes what they want isn’t what’s right for their child.” _

_ “Yeah,”  _ Draco signed, a bit...forlorn? Empty? There was a deep feeling in Draco’s chest that wasn’t easily identifiable. How many other things were Lucious and Narcissa Malfoy wrong about?

———-

A good portion of Draco’s third year was spent in the library, partially to help with homework, and partially to do trans research. There wasn’t a lot to choose from, but Draco did eventually find a book containing autobiographies of transgender folks within the wizarding community titled  _ My Identity and Me _ . Most of the entries were from binary trans people, but there was a plethora of people with other identities within the book too, and all of them talked about their experiences being trans. With the book’s helpful “pronoun pals” section, Draco thought it would be nice to try out they/them pronouns for a while to see how it felt. Usevious gave them tips on gender neutral language (using person, rather than boy/girl; wix, rather than wizard/witch) and by the end of third year Draco was integrating it into their normal vernacular.

During fourth year, Draco finally worked up the nerve to check out the book from Madam Pince (who spared an interested glance, but thankfully didn’t comment). They wanted to read it with Usevious, but didn’t know how to execute that. After looking through the library and finding nothing, Draco decided to ask Snape. 

Draco knocked on the door to the potion master’s office. “Professor Snape?”

There was a minute of nothing (Draco later realized their professor’s call for them to enter had fallen on deaf ears), then the door opened. “ _ Draco?”  _ Snape signed. “ _ Do you need something?” _

Draco shifted a bit on their feet. “ _ I was wondering if you knew of a way to stay under water for prolonged periods of time?” _

“ _ What is this for?”  _ Snape asked with a raised eyebrow.

“ _ I’ve gotten interested in...swimming…recently.” _

Snape gave them a look that said he remained unconvinced, but relented anyway. “ _ On the far side of the Great Lake there is a colony of gillyweed. That is a plant which can be consumed to grow gills to breathe underwater. It’s grown a bit out of hand, so have as much as you would like.”  _ He rummaged through his desk for a moment, before handing Draco a picture labeled ‘Gillyweed’.

“ _ Thank you, Professor.” _

“ _ Do remember that it is nearly curfew,”  _ he reminded in a stern voice that didn’t reach his eyes. “ _ Whatever you’re doing, please be careful.” _

“ _ I will _ ,” Draco signed, before turning and making their way to the Great Lake.

The sun had just gone down, so light was almost gone from the grounds. Draco made their way across the open stretch between the entrance hall and the Great Lake, then walked the circumference until an expanse of thick, coiled plants came into view. Draco consulted the picture, determined it to be the same plant, and then reached down and grabbed a few handfuls from beneath the water. Next, they pulled  _ My Identity and Me _ from their robes and cast a quick protection charm on it, then themself. Finally, they took a deep breath, swallowed some gillyweed, and jumped into the water. 

After a moment, there was a blinding pain on their neck, then it subsided and Draco realized breathing was coming easily under the water. It worked! They swam forward, toward the main building, where Usevious agreed to meet them. It was dark under the water, so Draco cast a quick  _ lumos _ to light their way. Before long, Usevious was coming into view, waving and grinning.

“ _ You did it!”  _ they signed as Draco swam up. “ _ How does it feel?” _

“ _ Great!” _

_ “What did you end up using to breathe underwater?” _

_ “Oh! Snape recommended using gillyweed from the colony on the other side of the lake.” _

Usevious laughed _. “I completely forgot about that! Yeah, that’ll keep you down here for at least an hour. How much did you get?” _

Draco patted their pocket where they were storing the extra gillyweed _. “I have plenty to spare.” _

_ “Great! Let’s look at that book you brought.” _

So, together they poured over the contents, discussing what best fit their identities.

“ _ I like agender,”  _ Usevious signed, pointing to the word on the page.

Draco nodded. “ _ That’s pretty fitting.” _

“ _ What about you? Does anything stand out?” _

_ “I like non-binary as sort of like an umbrella term, but I’m not sure if it fits me specifically.” _

_ “Hmm okay.”  _ Usevious mulled over the pages for a moment. _ “What about this one? Genderqueer.” _

Draco looked at the section they were referencing. The wix in question described her gender as something present in her awareness but completely outside of the gender binary. Draco rolled the word around in their mind. Genderqueer.

“ _ Yeah,”  _ they signed. “ _ I like that.” _

——-

Now that they knew how to stay underwater for long periods of time, Draco, more often than not, moved their nightly talks to the Great Lake. Without a barrier between them, Draco and Usevious talked, swam around, held impromptu swimming/diving/trick competitions, and generally had fun. Soon, their exploits gathered a crowd, and it wasn’t long before other merpeople were participating in the competitions as well. Draco finally had a glimpse of what having a family felt like.

One weekend, after wrapping up their underwater antics, Draco walked out of the lake and came face to face with none other than Harry Potter.

“ _ Can I help you?”  _ Draco signed, more confused than anything else.

_ “Did you just walk out of the lake?” _

“ _ Yes?” _

Harry gestured at Draco’s clothes. “ _ You aren’t wet!” _

Draco smirked. “ _ It’s a simple drying charm, Potter.” _

“ _ Oh. _ ” Harry nodded. “ _ That makes sense. _ ”

They both stood there for a moment, waiting for the other person to say something.

“ _ Do you...spent a lot of time under the water?” _

“ _ I suppose?” _

“ _ Can you help me do the same thing?” _

Well. Okay. That was not a question they were expecting to receive. “ _ Why me? Why not Granger? She’s knowledgeable.” _

“ _ It‘s for the Triwizard Tournament. She’s already helped me so much with school work this year, I feel bad asking her for anything else. I wasn’t planning on asking you, but we ran into each other…” _

Draco blinked. Was the triwizard tournament still going on? They had completely forgotten about that. After a moment of deliberation, Draco motioned for Harry to follow, and began walking to the far side of the lake. When they arrived, Draco pulled a handful of gillyweed from the lake and handed it to Harry.

“ _ This is gillyweed,”  _ they explained. “ _ It’ll give you gills and webbed appendages for about an hour after you eat it. Is that what you need?” _

Harry nodded, looking both surprised and relieved. They walked back to the castle with surprisingly little tension. As they were about to enter the building, Harry tapped Draco, who turned to look at him.

“ _ Thank you. Seriously, I really appreciate this.” _

Draco winked, making Harry’s face flush. “ _ Don’t mention it,”  _ they signed with a grin. “ _ See you around, Chosen One.” _

And with that, Draco walked away a little warmer than they were before.

——

Despite the major distraction that the Triwizard Tournament created, Draco remained on top of their classes. Draco’s underwater activities took up the majority of their free time, but now they were seeing much more of Harry Potter. Was it their imagination, or was he getting better at sign language? Had he been practicing?

Draco came to the final task of the tournament with the rest of the school. They jumped to their feet when Harry came crashing out of the portal, cradling Cedric Diggory in his arms. Draco’s heart dropped. Of  _ course  _ the Dark Lord would find a way to crash the biggest event in the wizarding community. One with children participants, no less. If this was a sign, Draco heard it loud and clear in the sobs of Harry Potter. There was no way Draco could follow in their parents’ footsteps.

There was no way Draco could serve Voledemort.

Draco spent the summer trying to brainstorm ways to prevent their family from returning to Voldemort’s side. He had only freshly been reborn, so they had  _ maybe _ a year before he returned to power. Was there any way to sway their parents to the light?

_ No _ , Draco finally realized during a particularly sleepless night.  _ They’ll always remain loyal to him, and they’ll try to force me into serving him as well. If I’m going to change sides, I’ll have to do it alone. _

With that realization, Draco began guarding themself from their parents even more than usual. They became paranoid that one of them would try to use Legilimency to read their thoughts, so eye contact was avoided at every opportunity. The longest period of time they spent together that summer was when their dad apparated them to the train station, but thankfully that was only a minute or two. Draco made a note to learn how to apparate.

Even though Hogwarts was far preferable to the Malfoy manor, Professor Umbridge made Draco hate going to class. She assigned useless work, gave detentions by the bucketful, and, worst of all, she reminded Draco of their father.

Another annoyance about fifth year was the misgendering. They were always addressed as “Mister Malfoy” and lumped in with the boys. It was like a headache that wouldn’t go away before they even knew they were trans. Now that they realized they were genderqueer, it was more like a splitting migraine.

“ _ I just don’t know how I’m going to do it,”  _ Draco signed miserably. They were sitting at the bottom of the lake that night, trying to de-stress after a long week. 

“ _ What?” Usevious asked. “Get away from your parents? School work? Come out to people?” _

_ “Yes to all three.” _

“ _ Well why don’t you tackle one at a time? Maybe focus on school until you get that under control, research ways to get away from your parents during free time, and think about who you want to come out to along the way.” _

Draco nodded. “ _ Thank you for supporting me,”  _ they said, holding a flat hand out to their friend.

Usevious signed, “ _ Anytime,” _ and pressed their hand against Draco’s.

——

During their nightly meetings, Draco would bring homework or essay assignments to do. With Usevious’s direction, Draco kept up with the work. And after it was done, they were free to host more competitions or just hang out with other merpeople. Draco was learning more and more about their culture every day. It was becoming more and more clear that, even with a lack of technology, merpeople had a far more amiable society.

On land, Draco found that Harry was appearing with greater frequency on a daily basis. Nods and winks gradually developed into brief chats, which turned into fully fledged debates judged by Hermione. Sometimes topics would be something mundane (like which Hogwarts dessert was best) and others would be about class material (like what the most exciting potion was, the best goblin war general, etc). Soon, they ended up in the library, and it was a week before Draco realized they had accidentally formed a study group.

Sitting across from Harry in the library, watching him puzzle through a charms book with a confused look on his face, Draco wasn’t sure how they ever could’ve been enemies. 

It was a month before Draco realized they had actually become friends. The thought burned in Draco’s mind. Yes, of course it wasn’t ideal because of who the Malfoys were, but Draco blanched at the idea of not talking to Harry anymore, or even his friends. A bunch had joined their pseudo-impromptu study sessions, meaning Draco had hung around them for long enough to know that they were good people. People the Malfoys wouldn’t approve of. Draco smiled at that thought.

“ _ What do you think about holding sign language classes?”  _ Harry asked after class one day.

Draco blinked. “ _ Me? For who?” _

“ _ Our study group. Think of it as...a club or something. A sign language club. That way they can understand you directly, rather than going through me.” _

Draco mulled this over. It wasn’t the worst idea, it might actually make life a little easier. But did Draco really want to teach alone?

Almost as if he could read Draco’s thoughts, Harry added, “ _ Hermione’s already agreed to help teach _ .”

“ _ Sure,”  _ Draco conceded. “ _ Why not?” _

And so they started teaching sign language to the group. Ginny and Neville seemed to catch on easily, but Ron had a bit of trouble at first. With a little time, though, they actually began picking up the language fairly well. After a while, the news of their study group/sign language club spread, and more people began showing up to meetings from every house. Draco expected people like Luna, Seamus, and Dean; they were confirmed friends of Harry’s. But some unexpected arrivals were Hannah Abott, Terry Boot, Susan Bones, Pansy Parkinson, Blaise Zabini, and a plethora of Ravenclaws. 

Draco and Hermione taught with ease, the latter speaking and referencing proper grammar and sentence structure for the language, and the former giving demonstrations of signs and holding mock conversations with Hermione. They functioned like a well oiled machine and taught the class brilliantly...until they were discovered by Umbridge.

“Well, well, well,” she began in her sickly voice. “What do we have here? A secret club?”

Draco’s eyes rolled.

“It’s not secret, professor,” Hermione answered after a beat. “It’s just a club for students.”

“Not secret? Well then why didn’t I know about it, child?”

Hermionie and Draco exchanged looks. “Did you need to know about it?”

Umbridge’s nostrils flared dramatically. “Why of  _ course _ I do. I was sent by the ministry to gather information about how this school runs. I cannot do that if I don’t know everything that goes on within it.” She stared at the crowd behind the two appointed leaders of the group. “You all! Scatter! And don’t let me see you here again!” 

Until then, the group had been frozen. But at her words, they scattered. Harry lagged behind for a moment, asking Draco if he should stay for support. Draco quickly signed back, “ _ No.” _

Umbridge kept them there a while longer, berating them in her high pitched voice, before releasing them with the promise of two week’s detention. Draco was unconcerned. How rough could detention be?

Rough. Very rough.

Umbridge had them and every other student she caught in detention writing lines (I will not keep secrets, being Draco and Hermione’s) with a blood quill, meaning it carved the words into their skin. Harry was horrified when he saw the injuries the next day, but Draco convinced him not to say anything to the other professors, saying it was probably a one time thing. But it wasn’t, and after a couple weeks of the same garbage, Draco was sure the words would scar.

When Harry realized the torture had continued, he all but dragged Draco and Hermione to Madam Pomphrey. When the woman saw the words she nearly fainted.

“This looks like the work of a blood quill!” She held their arms gingerly in her hands, tears in her eyes. “You’re saying Professor Umbridge did this?” 

All three nodded their heads solemnly.

Draco tugged the arm away and signed, “ _ She did this to everyone she gave detention.” _

She looked even more faint at that announcement, then anger overtook her features. “You all stay here, I’ll be back in a moment. I’m going to fetch Dumbledore.”

Draco sat on a bed along the wall, and Harry and Hermione did the same.

“ _ Thank you,”  _ Draco signed. “ _ For making me come here. I...have a hard time asking for help.” _

Harry nodded, a warm smile on his face. “ _ Don't worry, I have a knack for helping my friends.” _

Draco flushed, feeling warm, and looked down. Was now a good time? Well, it was as good a time as any.

“ _ Hey, I want to tell you something. _ ”

“ _ Okay,” Harry responded. _

_ “What’s on your mind?” Hermione asked. _

Draco took a deep breath and tried to calm the nerves threatening to stop the conversation in its tracks. “ _ I’m transgender. Genderqueer.” _

A look of surprise came over them, before they grinned.

“ _ That’s amazing!”  _ Harry signed enthusiastically.  _ “How long have you known?” _

Draco exhaled a long, shaky breath. They were okay with it. Thank Merlin.  _ “Not too long, I only figured out the right label this year.” _

Hermione chimed in _ , “Wow, that’s fairly recent! Thank you for sharing with us. Who else knows?” _

_ “Just you two, and another friend of mine. I planned on telling the professors this year, but the whole Umbridge situation made it difficult.” _

_ “That makes sense. Bright side, though, maybe this—”  _ she gestured to her arm, “— _ will make the school fire her and you can tell the professors without fear.” _

Draco laughed. “ _ That’s true.” _

About that time, the door to the hospital wing opened and Dumbledore swept into the room. Within minutes of examining their arms and discovering that it was, indeed, Professor Umbridge who had inflicted the wounds, she was arrested and being taken back to the ministry of magic to await trial. Classes continued as normal, except for the DADA, which Snape and McGonagall took turns teaching.

Amidst the change, Draco decided to try out the neopronouns xe/xem/xir. When Harry, Hermione, and the rest of the sign language club began to use them, xe almost started crying. Yes, these were the pronouns for xem.

After getting permission from Usevious, Draco invited Harry and Hermione down into the lake one weekend afternoon. Finally, xir closest friends had met in person. And they hit it off! They spent hours down in the lake, chatting and touring the deeper areas together. It was the most fun Draco had had in a long time.

Near the end of the year, Draco worked up the courage to write a letter to each of the professors, explaining xir identity, pronouns, and preference for neutral language. Everyone took the news in stride, especially Snape, who immediately asked if xe wanted to move to an individual room adjacent to the normal Slytherin dorms. Draco gratefully accepted the offer. 

Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before Draco knew xe had to go back to the Malfoy Manor. In the days before the end of term, Draco redoubled xir efforts to find a way to escape xir parents. Harry noticed xir shift in behavior and asked what xe was researching one day.

“ _ I’m trying to figure out if I can make a solid plan to run away from home before my parents try to turn me into a death eater. _ ”

_ “Oh. Not what I was expecting. Well, any luck so far?” _

Draco frowned. “ _ No.” _

_ “Here, let me help.” _

He sat at the table with Draco, and together they brainstormed and read from books for a couple more hours. They didn’t even notice when Hermione arrived until she slid into the other chair at the table. 

“ _ What’re we doing?” _

_ “Trying to find a way for Draco to avoid xir parents’ influence when Voldemort takes power.” _

Hermione quirked her head. _ “Oh, so like somewhere to hide from them?” _

Draco nodded.

“ _ Okay, what about the Great Lake? You could use a spell to prolong the effects of gillyweed so it would last days instead of hours, then just stay under the water.” _

Draco blinked. “ _ That’s perfect.” _

Hermione grinned.

——

The trio was wildly productive during the last month of term. After asking the merpeople for their opinions (and being approved), they ran their idea by Professor Dumbledore. He absolutely adored it and set them up to work with Professor Flitwick to perfect the stasis charm needed.

In the meantime, Draco spread the news to xir friends about a possibility to avoid the war’s politics entirely by giving an alternative to going home. Many people in Slytherin were interested, especially those in families of past death eaters. Xe didn’t tell anyone the specifics, nor where they would be going, just to be safe. 

“ _ Hey, Draco? _ ” Harry asked, during one of their meetings.

Xe quirked an eyebrow.

“ _ Do you think it would be okay to extend this to people whose home life is bad for other reasons? Like abuse? _ ”

Draco didn’t have to think about it. “ _ Yes, of  _ course _ we can.” _

By the last week of school, the plan was cemented and Draco, Harry, and Hermione had learned the stasis charm. They gathered everyone interested in the program (way more than Draco thought would come!) in the library and had everyone write a letter to their parents or guardians saying that they would be spending summer break on a Hogwarts trip, receiving specialized spellcasting instruction. This was paired with an official letter from Dumbledore himself stating the same things and sent out as the rest of the student population left for home. Once that was done, the students were taken to the Great Lake where they were given long-lasting, charmed gillyweed and sent into the lake. 

The merpeople, knowing that these children were refugees trying to escape their home lives or what was to come, were thrilled to have them. Draco was a bit concerned that some of the kids would be disrespectful, but no one seemed to have an issue. Over the next few months, everyone learned to make their own shelter, catch and gather food, and help the merpeople with any problems they had. They also fertilized and propagated the gillyweed colony, growing it to sustain their constant use.

Several parents wrote to Hogwarts during the summer, some angrily demanding their children be returned, others simply inquiring about the trip. Thankfully, only a few came to campus looking for the kids themselves, but they did not find anything

Lucius sent Draco a letter a week into the summer, expressing annoyance at the short notice, but pride that xe was receiving specialized instruction. He also clearly noted that they were hosting a special guest that would have liked to meet Draco, but who would now settle for a test of loyalty instead that would involve fixing a magical teleportation cabinet.

Draco rolled xir eyes when xe read it. Merlin, xe was glad xe didn’t go home. Voldemort was at xir house! Draco took the information to Harry immediately, who recommended that xe tell Dumbledore as well. Upon doing so, the headmaster informed xem that he was aware of the situation, but couldn’t do anything at the time. Draco didn’t like that answer, but didn’t have a plan xemself, so decided to just drop it for now.

Draco responded to xir father with a short letter, expressing false apologies and assuring him that xe would complete the task. In reality, Draco was working with Harry and Usevious to figure out how to take Voldemort down.

Sixth year rolled around, the kids in the lake program were released back into Hogwarts with orders not to divulge where they were to anyone. Everyone was happy to comply, relieved that they had a peaceful summer. 

Draco’s inter-house study group came back full swing. By then, the professors knew about it as well, and started giving extra practice material for them to work through during the sessions. But, for once, the tensions didn’t raise above normal school levels. Draco was relieved.

Lucius Malfoy sent several letters throughout the year, asking about Draco’s progress with the cabinet and if xe was done yet. Draco laughed every time xe got one. Xe had never even laid eyes on the cabinet!

Near the end of the year, Harry was called to Dumbledore’s office after classes. He wasn’t back by dinner.

“ _ What if he’s hurt?”  _ Draco signed nervously _. “Or captured?” _

They were sitting across from each other in the lake, well past curfew. Draco was far past caring about silly grounds rules.

_ “Why would Dumbledore take Harry somewhere dangerous? How do you know he’s not just up in his office right now?” _

Draco gritted his teeth. “ _ I just went up there to check. They’re not there!”  _ Xe ran xir hands through xir hair, tugging at the strands, trying to ground xemself. 

Usevious pulled Draco into an embrace, then released xem and signed, “ _ He will come back. Be there when he does.” _

Draco nodded. Xe could do that. 

Xe ascended from the lake, intending to head back to the common room, until xir eyes fell on a mark in the sky above the Astronomy tower. The dark mark.

Voldemort was here.

Draco’s heart dropped as xe realized this, then dropped even further when xe saw Dumbledore escorting Harry to the astronomy tower! What was that old man doing? Surely they saw the mark in the sky, so what was Dumbledore doing getting Harry involved?

Xe raced forward, feet pounding on the wet grass, wishing xe learned how to speak so xe could yell and get them to stop. Get Harry to stop. 

Now Dumbledore was pulling out some sort of fabric (a cloak?) and giving it to Harry. Draco was confused, but it gave xem enough time to reach them.

“ _ What are you doing here?”  _ Dumbledore signed slowly.

Draco realized Dumbledore looked really bad, like  _ really _ bad. Xe looked between the other two. “ _ What am I doing? What are  _ you  _ doing? That’s the dark mark!” _

Dumbledore sighed. “ _ Yes, I know. I expect this will be an ambush. _ ”

“ _ So you just decided to bring Harry into it?”  _ Draco was livid.

Dumbledore took a moment, before replying, “ _ It doesn’t matter. You and Harry get somewhere safe. Alert the rest of the school that we are under attack.” _

Draco didn’t have to be told twice. Xe grabbed Harry’s hand and they ran. Before they entered the main building, they heard unhinged cackling from the tower. When they glanced back to look, a faint green light shone through the windows. Harry gasped. Draco swallowed the horror building in xir throat and pulled Harry inside. They ran as fast as they could up to Dumbledore’s office. Surely there was something there that could notify the whole school as quickly as possible. It only took a minute to uncover the cone-like item they needed: a magic megaphone.

“Attention everyone! Hogwarts is under attack by Voldemort and his followers! You have to leave Hogwarts immediately!”

And with that, the alarm had been sounded. Professors grabbed emergency portkeys and funneled the students from the grounds as quickly as possible. Harry grabbed something else from the side of the office, took Draco’s hand, then bolted back downstairs. They managed to catch Professor Flitwick as he was taking his last group of students. With a twist of light, Hogwarts was gone.

They appeared in a field that Draco didn’t recognize. In the distance, a town was barely visible. A couple professors popped back out to check to see if there were any more students. Heads of houses began doing a count of the students, but it looked like they had managed to get ahead of the punch and were able to evacuate the school in time.

Draco looked at Harry. “ _ Let’s see if we can round our group up. _ ”

He still looked a bit shaken, but nodded in agreement. Together they walked the crowd and got the people from their study group to gather outside the group of students. Once together, a bunch of people started talking all at once, some asking what was happening, others asking if they should go back and fight. Draco looked at Harry, who in turn whistled loudly. Once he had everyone’s attention he started talking, signing as he did. 

“ _ I know what happened tonight is scary, but we can’t panic. We have to stay calm.” _

Their group quieted, and the mass of people behind them started to do the same, somewhat starting to listen to what Harry had to say.

_ “When He-Who-Should-Not-Be-Named was young, his name was Tom Riddle. Tonight, Dumbledore took me to look for something he called a Horcrux. It contained a fragment of Riddle’s soul.”  _ At this, there was a ripple of shock through the crowd. Even the professors had stopped to listen at this point. “ _ When we arrived, it wasn’t there, but a death eater was. Dumbledore told me he thought that Riddle had his followers steal the Horcruxes back in preparation for an attack. He didn’t realize the attack would be on the school, or that it would be tonight.” _

Draco looked around. The crowd seemed to be taking the information solemnly, but fairly well considering the circumstances. Xe had already known about horcruxes from xir father’s lessons, but didn’t realize Voldemort had used the terrible act to prolong his life. Draco guessed xe should have known.

_ “We as students are not equipped to handle death eaters or Riddle himself. We know that. But I can’t just sit here while they take over our school.” _

Professor McGonagall walked over to Harry and signed as she asked, “ _ What do you propose we do, Mr Potter? I contacted the Ministry, there are already aurors on scene. We can not send students into a battlefield.” _

Harry’s eyes glinted. “ _ I’m not proposing we go into the battlefield.” _

——

Draco, Harry, Hermionie, several other students, and the professors (minus Sprout who stayed behind to watch those who chose not to come) portkeyed into Hogwarts grounds. The scene was chaos, aurors and death eaters facing off in magic duels that shattered the earth around them. As soon as their feet hit the grass, the professors joined the fight and students summoned their brooms and flew into the sky. Draco and Harry peeled off toward the lake and Hermione led the rest toward the castle.

Draco hovered over the water and cast lumos. Within moments, Usevious and several other merpeople surfaced.

“ _ Draco!”  _ Usevious exclaimed, looking as afraid as they did relieved _. “What’s going on?” _

“ _ Voldemort invaded the school! Can you help us restrain death eaters until the end of the fight?” _

The merpeople around them grinned and dove beneath the water. Anyone who knew anything about them knew that they have powerful magical abilities that can easily be wielded against those who wrong them. They would easily be able to ensnare any mind that hears their song beneath the water, a perfect way to keep death eaters from the fight.

Draco sent sparks up into the sky, signaling that the plan was in place, then he and Harry flew as quickly as possible through a second story castle window. Now inside, they zipped through the halls until almost crashing into Hermione and Blaise on a staircase.

“ _ We found one!”  _ Hermione signed quickly, holding up her bag which, presumably, held a horcrux. Harry had warned her and the other students not to touch them directly, or risk being overtaken by the dark magic harbored in them, so that’s why it was in a bag rather than in her hands.

Harry hopped off his broom and brandished what he had grabbed last minute from Dumbledore’s office: the sword of Gryffindor. “This should be able to destroy the horcrux. Drop it on the floor.”

Hermione upturned her bag and a golden cup tumbled out. Harry brought the sword down on the cup, and it sliced through the metal like it wasn’t even there.

Draco nudged it with xir shoe. “ _ Did we do it?” _

“ _ Yep,”  _ Harry grinned. “ _ Let’s find the others.” _

——

With the death eaters being contained in the Great Lake, the battle was turning quickly toward the light. Both outside and inside the castle, aurors and professors were slowly weeding down the death eaters’ numbers. To make things better, the Weasley twins arrived with makeshift magic grenades that threw the death eaters off completely. With their Quidditch experience, they had scarily accurate aim, pelting the death eaters mercilessly from above. The sight of Voledemort’s followers making fools of themselves made Draco’s day a little bit brighter.

The kids managed to find most of the remaining horcruxes in the possession of aurors who had bested the death eaters carrying them. Dumbledore mentioned that Voldemort’s snake was a horcrux, so they were on the lookout for her during the hunt for the objects, without luck. Finally, they followed an auror’s screams and found the snake cornering him in one of the classrooms. Harry jumped forward while the snake was distracted and lopped off her head. 

The auror sank to the floor in relief. “Thanks,” he managed, voice quavering. “I couldn’t get away. Thought I was done for.”

Harry nodded. “Anytime. You might want to go out and rejoin the fight, though.”

“Oh. Right.” He smiled sheepishly, then pushed himself up and jogged out toward the battle.

Draco turned to Harry. “ _ That was the last one, right?” _

_ “I think so. Now I just have to deal with Voldemort himself.” _

_ “Right.” _ Draco frowned. “ _ Be careful, okay, Harry? I’ve already lost my parents. I don’t need to lose anyone else to Voldemort.” _

Harry winked. “ _ Don’t worry. You can’t get rid of me that easily.” _

Draco’s lips twitched. “ _ I should hope not.” _

Together, they mounted their brooms and shot out the nearest window to the Hogwarts grounds. It was far from the carefully manicured sight it had been just yesterday, with giant holes, scorch marks, and fires marring the earth. The last few death eaters were losing their ground quickly, being pushed closer and closer to the castle entrance. Harry and Draco dropped near the battle, waiting for it to end, when the doors to the school flew open and out walked Lord Voldemort himself.

“Where is Harry  _ Potter _ ?”

Harry clenched his jaw and walked forward.

Voldemort’s gaze snapped to him. “Ah, there he is. Hello, my boy. How are things? Quite the  _ production _ you light siders have created. Though I will admit you’ve put up more of a fight than I was expecting.”

“Give up, Voldemort!” Harry all but growled. “We’ve basically won. Stop fighting now, or face the consequences!”

“Hmm. A tempting offer. But I think I’ll have to  _ pass. Avada Kedavra!” _

Draco gasped, but Harry dove out of the way, casting his own, “ _ Expelliarmus _ !”

Voldemort cackled darkly. “Is that all you  _ have _ , Chosen One?” 

They tossed their spells back and forth, narrowly missing each other. Then, out of nowhere, their magics crossed, sparking brilliantly into the now dawning sky. Voldemort twisted his wrist, putting more force into the stream and stomped forward toward Harry, who was digging his heels into the ground in an attempt to keep his footing. Voldemort marched closer, spitting what Draco could only assume to be curses in Harry’s direction. As he continued his stride, closing the gap, the connection between them brightened, almost electrifying the rest of the battlefield. 

Draco was worried. Would Harry really be able to defeat Voldemort? Xe knew that it was prophesied, but it really hurt being sidelined in this fight. All xe could do was watch and hope for the best as Voldemort grew closer until they were only a few feet from each other and the light became blinding. Draco shielded xir eyes. Was Harry okay? Xe couldn’t see anything!

Then, all of the sudden, the light vanished and two figures dropped to the ground. Everything seemed to freeze around Draco as xe ran forward, forgetting entirely about xir broom in the moment. The fighting around xem didn’t matter anymore, there was only Harry, laying there, motionless in the grass. Draco fell to xir knees beside him, checking his neck for a pulse, and choking when xe realized there wasn’t one. Harry couldn’t be  _ gone _ , he just couldn’t be! He was the boy who lived. The Chosen One! Surely he wouldn’t be...he couldn’t be…

Draco just sat there, cradling Harry’s limp body. Xe wondered numbly if this was what Harry felt like at the end of the Triwizard Tournament. Defeated, alone. Xe had finally made another genuine friend, and this was what happened. How cruel was life going to be to xem?

The battle finished as the aurors cleaned up the rest of the death eaters and carted them, as well as the ones trapped in the Great Lake, off to Askaban. They also took Voldemort’s body—just to be safe. The professors and students gathered reverently around the duo, some (Hermione, Ginny, Blasie) sitting with Draco on the ground. For a few moments, everyone was still.

Then Harry gasped awake.

Draco blinked in shock. “ _ How…” _

Harry laughed, eyes shining. “ _ Told you you couldn’t get rid of me that easily.” _

Draco wrapped xir arms around him as the group around them cheered. Everyone was okay. They had won.


End file.
